The Seafarer's Guide to Elanthia/Gems of the Sea
__TOC__ Aquamarine Aquamarine is a perfectly transparent gem of an extraordinarily pale blue color with just a hint of green. It can be faceted to produce a delicate yet brilliant fire. Types and Locations Lore Despite the legends and associations, aquamarine corresponds magically to the mental school of transference, and it remains quite inert to water magics. Stone-tenders say that aquamarine help protect against seasickness -- a rather ironic assertion, since most stone-tenders come from the landlocked Duchy of Aldora, but many infrequent sea travelers swear by its usefulness. (Others just swear, but the gem's success stories travel farther than its failures.) Diviners say that aquamarine can be used to predict the moods of the sea and to help find a course least likely to anger Charl. Ancient legend holds that Niima's mother, like the Arkati Lumnis, took a particular interest in mortals. Supposedly, a seafaring elf was supposed to give up his life upon the ocean and move inland to fulfill the terms of a betrothal made when he was a small child. When he last went to the goddess's shrine, he filled the font upon the altar with saltwater from his tears of regret. The heart of the Arkati was touched by the elf's love of her husband's realm, and she touched the water with her power, transforming some of it into an aquamarine talisman. Ever after, it is said, whenever someone grieves for lack of the sea, part of their grief filters down into the rock and creates aquamarine stones. The dwarves say this is all nonsense, but the legend has captured elven fancy to a degree that seems unlikely to fade. When traveling far from the shore, human and elven sailors alike often wear aquamarine amulets engraved with dolphins to invoke Niima's favor and avoid Charl's wrath. A gift of aquamarine represents sympathy, trust, and fellow-feeling. Coral There are many different types of coral, which vary widely in appearance from one another. Coral stones are composed of twisting protrusions of rock that wrap around each other. The protrusions may be long or short, symmetrical or asymmetrical, rough or polished, and all of these will affect the value assigned to the stone. One noteworthy variant is flower coral, which is pale bluish-grey in hue and receives its name because its protrusions are arranged like the edges of petals. Another is cat's-paw coral, which is a milky white hue and bears some resemblance to a group of cats’ paws. A third is blue ridge coral, which is a distinctive pastel blue color like a clear spring sky. Types and Locations Lore In actuality, coral is not a stone at all, but the skeleton left behind by a peculiar plant that stretches for miles upon miles underwater. Coral is considered the sacred stone of Charl, the ill-tempered Arkati who holds domain over seas and storms. As a result, humans consider it bad luck to wear coral in seaside cities unless the person wearing the coral is a priest of Charl or Niima. All along the western coast, human sailors will offer coral to placate Charl before setting sail. Members of the Order of Voln have also been known to sacrifice coral for Charl's approval while trying to earn Voln's favor. Unsurprisingly, coral is attuned to the element of water. As well, it has certain powers related to the lore of telepathy, which can be unsettling if harnessed unconsciously rather than consciously. In Solhaven, sailors say that carrying coral aboard a ship will attract kraken. Multiple stories exist about foolhardy merchants who tried to smuggle coral and attracted such an attack. In some of the stories, the vessel is saved by Niima's intervention; in others, the sailors save themselves by throwing the unlucky merchant overboard. Geode Externally, a geode is a round rock of unimpressive appearance. Within, however, a geode will either contain a pocket of sparkling crystals at its heart or a core of solid, semi-precious stone. The center of a geode may be made of quartz, calcite, or chalcedony (using the word "chalcedony" in the dwarven sense, which incorporates carnelian, sard, bloodstone, onyx, sardonyx, chrysoprase, agate, and jasper as well as the traditional white stone). Types and Locations Lore An oft-retold parable among followers of Voaris compares the mortal races to geodes -- the outside may be dull or repulsive, but a shimmering jewel waits within the heart. This story is recounted most often when attempting to reconcile two disapproving families to a love match between their offspring, and it traditionally ends, "Now, if your son's eye is so keen that he can see jewels where you see only dull rock...is it a lacking in his vision, or your own? Be sure in your answer, for your son's happiness and your own depend upon it." Geodes make poor jewelry, but many clerics of Voaris carry a geode around for the purpose of illustrating the story, and shrines consecrated to Voaris often bear one or more of the stones. Geodes without air pockets are called “thunder eggs” along the coast of the Turamzzyrian Empire. Mined in parts of Torre, they are commonly carried by human sea captains, for throwing a thunder egg overboard will supposedly lessen the wrath of Charl. Regrettably, the origins of this custom have been lost in time. Magically, geodes are aligned with the elemental power of earth. Some mages who are particularly well-attuned to the earth have the ability to find geodes without splitting the stones open. Meditating upon unbroken stones, they can tell the heart of a geode from the heart of a regular rock. Mermaid's-tear sapphire Mermaid's-tear sapphires are always a deep, perfect, uniform shade of blue. When compared to normal sapphires, they are significantly more opaque, but they glow brilliantly when struck by light. No uncut or cabochon-cut mermaid's-tear sapphire has ever been discovered, although few are faceted to their best advantage and many are damaged. For this reason, almost all mermaid's-tear sapphires available for sale have been recut by a jeweler, although some buyers take great pride in purchasing only "natural" mermaid's-tear sapphires. Types and Locations Lore Mermaid's-tear sapphires are aligned with the elemental force of water, and it is also said that they are quite efficacious in summoning and commanding various spirits. Despite being the consummate jewelsmiths of Elanthia, the Greetok and Oltregek dwarves shun the use of mermaid's-tear sapphires, and most of the other dwarves follow suit -- the dwarves hold that mermaid's-tear sapphires are too magical to be "real" gems, and they feel that a gem that cannot be found in the earth is neither worth wearing nor using. Stone-tenders say that mermaid's-tear sapphires can be used to help overcome the effects of breathing water, but they also say that doing so may bind the patient's will to the water, encouraging the patient into future danger. Human diviners say that mermaid's-tear sapphires can be used to foretell Charl's moods. Merchants traveling by sea from the port of Idolone often seek the services of diviners who use mermaid's-tear sapphires to foretell storms. The gift of a mermaid's-tear sapphire is usually symbolic of some sort of grief, but whether it is a private grief or a call for action depends on the context and the person. One human legend heard from time to time claims that a mermaid can be enslaved by placing a necklace of her own tears bound in mithril about her throat. Since mermaids are among the rarest and most elusive creatures in Elanthia, however, it is hard to believe that anyone has ever tested this claim. Opal Opal comes in many varieties, all of which are renowned for their remarkable play of iridescent color. White opal presents myriad pastel rainbows to the viewer's eye, while black opal creates dark, rich shades. Fire opal is reddish-gold, and dragonfire opal is a striated form of fire opal. Frost opal is primarily blue and white. Moonglae opal is forest green marked with silvery crescents, and the characteristic iridescent colors of the opal are concealed in each of its silver markings. Types and Locations Lore Opal, even fire opal, is strongly aligned with the element of water. Particularly sensitive wizards and skillful alchemists claim that proper opal actually contains a great deal of water in its substance -- perhaps even as much as a tenth of its body! Others dismiss this claim as obvious folly. In addition to its elemental alignment, opal has power to enhance spells of a religious nature. Opal is a truly remarkable stone, and, as such, it is unsurprising that it is seen as sacred to multiple deities by their followers. On the Turamzzyrian coast, particularly in Allace and Torre, white opal is said to be Niima's chosen jewel because tiny, pale rainbows akin to the rainbows of a white opal can be seen in the flashing spray of a breaking wave crest. Black opal is favored both by followers of Lumnis and followers of Fash'lo'nae. Followers of Lumnis say that the vibrant, intense hues of black opal resemble the brilliant feathers of a parrot, and they point out the elven legend claiming that Lumnis brought color to the roses of the world. If roses, why not opals? Followers of Fash'lo'nae, in turn, say that white opal, with its weaker, less entrancing colors, should be bestowed upon Lumnis, because Lumnis seeks to obscure truths that will do more harm than good, and that black opal truly belongs to Fash'lo'nae because Fash'lo'nae seeks knowledge for its own sake. In the human duchy of Aldora, where the traditional art of stone-tending is practiced, healers will often use fire opal to treat skin diseases and white opal to treat blindness. They warn against wearing opal jewelry or gazing over-long into opals because they say that opals can diffuse the mind and invite madness. Their opinions have not yet affected Imperial fashion, as opals complimented by seed pearls are very much in vogue in Tamzyrr as of late. The silent, reclusive Wsalamir giantmen attach significance to frost opal, though they do not tie it to any of the Arkati. They believe that a piece of frost opal forms whenever a wendigo is born. If they are forced to travel, shamans of the Wsalamir often carry pieces of frost opal about with them in order to instill themselves with the strength of their icy homeland. For a Wsalamir to say that a non-Wsalamir has "frost opal eyes" is one of the highest compliments possible -- it means that the Wsalamir accepts the other person with the same trust given to a clan mate despite the person's differences of birth. Pearl A pearl is made of layers of translucent nacre that create an opaque whole. Pearls are usually round, though not necessarily perfectly spherical. They occur naturally in a variety of colors, including grey, pink, black, white, and the intense crimson color of the rare fire pearl. Hints of iridescence often infuse the pearl's predominant color, and the darkest pearls sometimes possess a peculiar, almost metallic gleam. Types and Locations Lore Pearls are strongly aligned with the element of water, enabling elemental mages to cast powerful water spells even in the heart of the desert. They are also affiliated with religious lore, as meditation upon a pearl will assist clerics in perceiving the influences of various Arkati. Pearls are also quite effective in dispelling evil enchantments or fashioning wards against sorcery. On Kezmon Isle, clerics of Niima taught their flock that every pearl holds one of Niima's tears at its heart. When Niima's divine mother died, according to Kezmonian legend, Niima wept for a thousand years, and oysters caught her tears and preserved them in nacre. At the end of her time of weeping, she set aside her grief forever, becoming the sunny, joyous goddess to whom sailors pray. According to the same legend, her father never wept for the death of his love, and that is the reason for Charl's dark temper and the storms that sweep over the sea. Since the disappearance of Kezmon, human scholars have relegated this legend to the realm of pretty stories rather than according it the respect of true religious lore. Pearls are undoubtedly the most popular gem in the southwest part of the Turamzzyrian Empire. In the garb of human nobility, pearls serve equally as jewelry and trim. Along the coast near Tamzyrr, even the poorest fisherwoman normally has a pearl earring squirreled away for the highest of occasions. Human poets often refer to pearls as "the gem of knights" because ancient legends claim that a pure white pearl will not abide a dishonorable wearer. As a result, black pearls are rarely worn in the Turamzzyrian Empire. Few modern nobles truly believe in the ancient superstition, but it still suggests that the wearer's honor is tarnished. The comparison with the royal black pearls used in elven heraldry by House Nalfein is inevitable and damaging to relations between elves and humans. During the retreat of the Turamzzyrian forces at the end of the Second Elven War, songsmiths and minstrels made much of the black pearls worn by their Nalfein opponents, claiming that they had only been defeated due to elven treachery -- "Look, the pearl tells the tale!" Shells A seashell, also known as a sea shell, or simply as a shell, is the common name for a hard, protective outer layer, a shell that was created by a sea creature, a marine creature. The shell is part of the body of a marine animal. In most cases a shell is an exoskeleton, usually that of an animal without a backbone, an invertebrate. Seashells are most often found on beaches. Types and Locations Lore No known lore as of yet, due to the nature of shells. Miscellaneous Random gems that may be of interest! Types and Locations Credits and Special Thanks Special thanks to Vyrshkana's player for the gem research she did that I pulled from her UGSFH script as well to play.net for having the gem guide there.